A municipality has requested emergency water help from charity organization Gift of the Givers in Cape Town, South Africa. The request would help assist more than 14,000 people with drinking water.
According to IOL, following the delivery of bottled water to crisis-hit Laingsburg and Beaufort West in the last two weeks, the Gift of the Givers chief executive Imtiaz Sooliman said the Kannaland municipality has been the latest to appeal to the organization for help.
The organization had expected more municipalities to call. Sooliman said many of the outlying Western Cape areas have been water distressed for several weeks now.
"This water was sponsored by South Africans directly to Gift of the Givers. We have responded to various water crises in the Western Cape throughout 2018,” Sooliman said to IOL. “Gift of the Givers has already packed trucks with bottled water to deliver this coming week to the areas mentioned in the letter. Many corporates have once again asked us to collect tons of bottled water from next week to respond to the various severely drought-affected areas in the Western Cape.”
According to IOL, the letter appeals for assistance, specifically for Calitzdorp and Zoar, and was signed by municipal manager Reynold Stevens.
“Kannaland municipality is currently facing tremendous challenges regarding the provision of drinking water due to the drought, and extreme dry weather conditions,” the letter read. “The communities of Calitzdorp, and Zoar [are] at this stage affected by this situation, due to the drop in dam levels.”
The municipality appealed for assistance with drinking water for 3,000 households, according to IOL.
According to mayoral spokesperson Ian Avontuur, the letter was intended to get stakeholders on board.
“We are facing an unforeseen crisis,” Avontuur said to IOR. He added that Stevens assured him that everything was under control and the situation was being monitored.
Environmental Affairs and Development Planning MEC Anton Bredell said the department was aware of “routine maintenance” on the Little Karoo Rural Water Supply network.
“The supply will be interrupted for a few hours. No water shortages in Calitzdorp are being experienced. The immediate water challenge should be resolved by this evening,” Bredell said to IOL.
According to IOL, the Oudtshoorn municipality confirmed the water supply was under pressure due to problems with the borehole pumps.